Private Acts of 1949 Chapter 916

SECTION 1. That the County Court of Montgomery County, under the provisions of Section 9 of Article 11 of the Constitution, is vested with powers to pass ordinances with regard to private and local affairs hereinafter expressly set forth, by the affirmative vote of a majority of the total number of members thereof; a meeting for the purpose of using these powers may be called on notice given by the County Judge or three members of the County Court.

SECTION 2. That an ordinance under the powers which it is deemed expedient to vest in said County Court shall only be valid after three readings at intervals of not less than ten days of the ordinance; after the first reading and within the ensuing ten days publication of the action entered upon the minutes shall be made two times in a newspaper or newspapers of general circulation in said county; the second reading shall be at a regular or at an adjourned meeting, the date of which shall be fixed at the first reading, and the third reading shall be after a similar publication and at a regular or an adjourned meeting, the date of which was so fixed; each publication notice shall be sufficient to inform the public as to the content of the ordinance and upon passage the ordinance shall be enrolled for public inspection in an indexed book in the office of the County Court Clerk, and all expenses of publication and enrollment shall be paid by the County.

SECTION 3. That acting as herein set forth said County Court may by ordinance: (1) regulate the sale of beer and ale, the places in which it may be consumed, the location and the hours and circumstances under which it may be sold and/or consumed, the disposition of containers and its transportation by retailers, and prohibit amusement devices, musical instruments, dancing facilities, chairs and tables, and require that the buildings in which beer is sold be so constructed as to facilitate regulation of operation, and be so located and arranged that side doors, back doors, closets, ante-rooms or other space may not be used to prevent or make difficult a brief inspection of the premises and fix the general location of the places of business, and (2) provide that any violation of such ordinance is a misdemeanor, and (3) provide that a third violation shall be a felony, and (4) provide that upon a second conviction of a misdemeanor any Court in the County may require that a bond to keep the peace, as provided for in the Code of Tennessee, may be required as a consideration to further operation by the offenders.

SECTION 4. That the provisions of this Act are hereby declared to be severable; and that if any section, provision, exception, sentence, clause, phrase, or part of this Act be held unconstitutional or void, the remainder of the Act shall continue in full force and effect, it being the Legislative intent now hereby declared that this Act would have been adopted even if such unconstitutional or void matter had not been included in the same.

SECTION 5. That this Act shall take effect from and after its passage, the public welfare requiring it.

Passed: April 15, 1949.